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Blender 2.8 Beginner Course: Edit Mode Tools

28 January 2019

Introduction

After creating our first, real 3D scene by the end of the previous chapter, we will now dive deeper into the Edit Mode. In this part of the Course, we will learn some new tools available in the Edit Mode only. By getting comfortable with these tools, you will be ready to actually start creating 3D models completely by yourself!

At the end of this Chapter, we'll create another small 3D project in Blender to revise everything we've learned. The tools we'll learn to use here are used by intermediate and advance Blender users on day to day basis. Let's now jump into it!

If you somehow missed the previous Course Chapters, please navigate using the amazing banner below:

16. Selecting Methods in Edit Mode

Selecting mesh elements in Edit Mode may be quite tricky sometimes, that's why Blender is equipped with some extra tools to help us in the daily work. In the video below I'll be covering the Edge Loop and Edge Ring selection methods, together with a few other tips and tricks you could use in Blender 2.80!

As you know from one of the previous videos (actually from the Video 12 of the Course), keeping multiple Meshes in a single Object is a quite useful way of having things organized in the 3D scene. Knowing how to quickly select different Mesh elements, makes that technique even more practical!

17. Loop Cut and Bevel Tools

You already know a few ways of creating new geometry in Edit Mode. Apart from the Extrude and Fill tools, there are another, two very powerful techniques which we will learn now. Loop Cut Tool well become your bread and butter when creating your own 3D models and the Bevel Tool will be a great addition to that! Let's now jump into the videos and see how it all works!

Course Part 17 Shortcuts:

The reason I'm introducing the Loop Cut and Bevel Tools together is that they both allow us creating additional Mesh elements around the Object's Edges. In the slide comparison below you can see the way Objects work with Smooth Shading applied, depending on the Mesh structure they're having. We'll learn more about that in the next video!

Smooth Shading look on the Object depends on the geometry structure you have in the Edit Mode!

18. Knife and Mirror Tools

Before we move into the more serious stuff, there are two more Edit Mode tools we need to get acquainted with. These are Knife and Mirror tools. The first one - Knife, allows you to freely create new Verticles and Edges around the Object's surfaces. It becomes very useful when you need to cut out an irregular shape or divide part of the geometry. Speaking of dividing, Knife tools also have the alternative working mode which is called Bisect - it allows you to cut through the object as you did it with a literal knife :-)

The other tool I'll be covering below is the Mirror Tool - something that allows you copying parts of the geometry and making things symmetrical. The symmetry can be also achieved in alternative way, using a Modifier instead. Just jump into the video to learn more about all of it!